Considering the relationship between major hard rock records and gaming culture
Text: mmr｜Theme: Relationship between hard rock and gaming culture
Hard rock was born from blues rock and psychedelic rock in the late 1960s and exploded in popularity in the 1970s. On the other hand, video game culture began to emerge in the late 1970s and became established as popular culture in the 1980s. Although both have developed independently, they have shared the impact of sound, visual aesthetics, and youth culture, creating unexpected intersections in each era. Here, we will organize the relationships by era and look back at the connections between representative masterpieces and gaming culture.
1960s-1970s: Birth of hard rock and the eve of arcades
Background: Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath appear in London and Los Angeles. Presenting a new musical experience with explosive sounds and profound riffs.
Point of contact with games: This era was still in the early days of arcades (the eve of ““Pong” and ““Space Invaders”). Although the direct link is weak, the psychedelic artwork and experiments with electronic sounds create seeds that resonate with the game’s electronic music aesthetic.
Representative masterpiece
Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
Deep Purple – Machine Head (1972)
Black Sabbath – Paranoid (1970)
10 recommended tracks
Song title
Artist
Stairway to Heaven
Led Zeppelin
Smoke on the Water
Deep Purple
Iron Man
Black Sabbath
Highway Star
Deep Purple
Whole Lotta Love
Led Zeppelin
Paranoid
Black Sabbath
Immigrant Song
Led Zeppelin
War Pigs
Black Sabbath
Child in Time
Deep Purple
Rock and Roll
Led Zeppelin
Representative game titles
Year
Title
Notes
1972
Pong
World’s first arcade hit
1976
Breakout
Simple visuals and sound, but rock-like rhythm
1978
Space Invaders
The title that defined the video game boom
1980s: The golden age of hard rock and the rise of arcade games
Time background: American hard rock such as Mötley Crüe and Van Halen were on the rise worldwide. With the advent of MTV, it was directly connected to visual culture.
Point of contact with games: The golden age of arcades (“Space Invaders”, “Pacman”, “Outrun”). In particular, Sega and Namco reproduce the fast-paced feel of rock music with sound chips.
Van Halen”s guitar solo sound and the game”s 8bit shred feel are audibly linked.
Representative masterpiece
Van Halen – 1984 (1984)
Mötley Crüe – Shout at the Devil (1983)
Def Leppard – Hysteria (1987)
10 recommended tracks
Song title
Artist
Jump
Van Halen
Panama
Van Halen
Shout at the Devil
Mötley Crüe
Dr. Feelgood
Mötley Crüe
Photograph
Def Leppard
Pour Some Sugar on Me
Def Leppard
Crazy Train
Ozzy Osbourne
Bark at the Moon
Ozzy Osbourne
Livin” on a Prayer
Bon Jovi
Wanted Dead or Alive
Bon Jovi
Representative game titles
Year
Title
Notes
1980
Pac-Man
Pop Culture Icon
1981
Donkey Kong
Symbol of Nintendo’s breakthrough
1983
Dragon”s Lair
Innovative animation and music production
1986
OutRun
BGM with a rock driving feel
1987
Contra
Explosive gaming experience and hard rock affinity
1989
Final Fight
Battle and hard rock sound
1990s: The rise of alternatives and home consoles
Time background: With the rise of grunge and alternative music, classic hard rock was in a bit of a decline. However, it is strongly supported by metal bands such as Metallica.
Point of contact with games: With the advent of PlayStation and Nintendo 64, CD sound sources were created. The use of ““actual rock songs’’ in games is also increasing.
The “Gran Turismo” series and “Tony Hawk”s Pro Skater” are symbols of the direct connection between rock and games.
Representative masterpiece
Guns N” Roses – Use Your Illusion I & II (1991)
Metallica – Metallica (Black Album) (1991)
Aerosmith – Get a Grip (1993)
10 recommended tracks
Song title
Artist
Enter Sandman
Metallica
Nothing Else Matters
Metallica
November Rain
Guns N” Roses
Don”t Cry
Guns N” Roses
Get a Grip
Aerosmith
Cryin”
Aerosmith
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Nirvana
Come As You Are
Nirvana
Alive
Pearl Jam
Black Hole Sun
Soundgarden
Representative game titles
Year
Title
Notes
1991
Sonic the Hedgehog
Speed and rock energy
1994
Doom II
Heavy guitar riff BGM
1997
Final Fantasy VII
Symphonic and rock fusion
1997
Gran Turismo
Featuring actual rock/techno songs
1999
Tony Hawk”s Pro Skater
A typical example of the direct connection between rock music and games
2000s: Digital age and “music game” boom
Background: Nu-Metal and Post-Grunge were hits. Although the tradition of hard rock is fragmented, it is still alive and well.
Connection with games: The “Guitar Hero” and “Rock Band” series have become social phenomena. Classic hard rock songs from the past are being rediscovered by a new generation.
Music games became a “re-education device” for hard rock, introducing Led Zeppelin and Metallica to teens.
Representative masterpiece
Linkin Park – Hybrid Theory (2000)
Audioslave – Audioslave (2002)
System of a Down – Toxicity (2001)
10 recommended tracks
Song title
Artist
In the End
Linkin Park
Crawling
Linkin Park
Chop Suey!
System of a Down
Toxicity
System of a Down
Cochise
Audioslave
Like a Stone
Audioslave
Numb
Linkin Park
One Step Closer
Linkin Park
Bring Me to Life
Evanescence
My Immortal
Evanescence
Representative game titles
Year
Title
Notes
2001
Halo: Combat Evolved
Rock meets epic score
2005
Guitar Hero
Trigger of rediscovery of rock
2007
Rock Band
Bringing the band experience into your home
2008
Grand Theft Auto IV
Various rock songs recorded on the radio
2009
Brutal Legend
The hard rock world view itself
2010s~Present: Streaming Era and Reappraisal
Background: Classic hard rock is being rediscovered through Spotify and YouTube.
Point of contact with games: In e-sports and distribution culture, hard rock will take on a new role as ““game live BGM” and ““arranged music for rhythm games.”
Games such as Doom (2016) that boldly incorporate hard rock/metal sounds have also appeared, once again emphasizing the relationship between “explosive music and adrenaline.”
Representative masterpiece
Foo Fighters – Wasting Light (2011)
Ghost – Meliora (2015)
Greta Van Fleet – Anthem of the Peaceful Army (2018)
10 recommended tracks
Song title
Artist
Rope
Foo Fighters
Walk
Foo Fighters
Cirice
Ghost
Square Hammer
Ghost
Safari Song
Greta Van Fleet
Highway Tune
Greta Van Fleet
The Pretender
Foo Fighters
Run
Foo Fighters
Rats
Ghost
Broken Bells
Greta Van Fleet
Representative game titles
Year
Title
Notes
2013
The Last of Us
Works with impressive guitar music
2016
Doom (Reboot)
Sound directly connected to metal/hard rock
2018
Red Dead Redemption 2
Rock epic worldview
2020
Cyberpunk 2077
Embodying Rock Attitude
2023
Hi-Fi RUSH
Fusion of rock music and rhythm action
List of hard rock songs included in the music game
Since the 2000s, music games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band have played an important role in bringing the hard rock classics of the past to a new generation. In addition, many unique interpretations of hard rock have appeared in Japanese arcade music games. The following is a typical recording example.
Guitar Hero series songs
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Guitar Hero (2005)
Smoke on the Water
Deep Purple
Famous songs that appeared in the first generation
Guitar Hero II (2006)
Sweet Child O” Mine
Guns N” Roses
Impressive guitar solo
Guitar Hero II (2006)
Carry on Wayward Son
Kansas
Hard rock anthem
Guitar Hero III (2007)
Welcome to the Jungle
Guns N” Roses
One of the most popular songs in the series
Guitar Hero III (2007)
One
Metallica
Famous as a highly difficult song
Guitar Hero III (2007)
Through the Fire and Flames
DragonForce
Legendary intense song
Guitar Hero: Aerosmith (2008)
Dream On
Aerosmith
Band-specific spin-off
Guitar Hero: Metallica (2009)
Master of Puppets
Metallica
Band-specific spin-off
Rock Band series songs
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Rock Band (2007)
Paranoid
Black Sabbath
Representative songs from the original recording
Rock Band (2007)
Won”t Get Fooled Again
The Who
Long Rock
Rock Band 2 (2008)
Chop Suey!
System of a Down
Representative Nu-Metal
Rock Band 2 (2008)
Everlong
Foo Fighters
Representative songs from the 90s
Rock Band 3 (2010)
Bohemian Rhapsody
Queen
Piano and guitar fusion
Rock Band 3 (2010)
Crazy Train
Ozzy Osbourne
Royal hard rock
Songs from Japanese arcade music games
KONAMI: GuitarFreaks / DrumMania Series
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
GuitarFreaks 1st (1999)
Jet World
Mutsuhiko Izumi
First representative song, with strong hard rock flavor
GuitarFreaks 2nd (1999)
Hypnotica
Mutsuhiko Izumi
Technical guitar solo
GuitarFreaks 4th (2001)
Fire
Mutsuhiko Izumi
Royal road rock riff
DrumMania 7th (2002)
The Least 100sec
BEMANI Sound Team
Progressive rock x hard rock style
GF/DM V series (2005~)
MODEL DD series
Mutsuhiko Izumi
Legendary as a difficult guitar piece
GF/DM V4 (2007)
DAY DREAM
Mutsuhiko Izumi
A masterpiece that torments players with its explosive guitar
KONAMI: beatmania IIDX series (hard rock recording example)
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
IIDX 3rd (1999)
V
TAKA
Classic x HR guitar style arrangement
IIDX 9th (2002)
Abyss -The Heavens Remix-
dj TAKA Remixed by Ryu☆
Contains metal elements
IIDX 14 GOLD (2007)
V2
TAKA
Remake with emphasis on band sound
Bandai Namco: Taiko no Tatsujin Series
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Taiko no Tatsujin 6 (2004)
DON”T CUT
Jimmy Weckl
Hard fusion drums
Taiko no Tatsujin 11 (2007)
Rumble Ranunculus
Seiya Murai
Guitar-based rock
Taiko no Tatsujin 14 (2010)
Xa
Tatsh
Metal high-speed song
Taiko no Tatsujin Green Ver. (2018)
MEGALOVANIA
Toby Fox
Guitar riff-based, game music origin
KONAMI: SOUND VOLTEX series
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
SOUND VOLTEX BOOTH (2012)
Black Emperor
RoughSketch
Metalcore + Electro
SOUND VOLTEX II (2013)
XROSS INFECTION
BlackY vs. siromaru
Hard Rock x Speed Core
SOUND VOLTEX III (2014)
Growth Memories
akhuta
Band sound
SOUND VOLTEX VIVID WAVE (2019)
I
nora2r
Digital hard rock style
Hard rock songs in mobile music games
Rayark: Cytus / Cytus II
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Cytus (2012)
Liberation
Sta
Hard rock style guitar riff
Cytus II (2018)
Freedom Dive
xi
High-speed song with metalcore elements
Cytus II (2018)
Chaos
Sta
Fusion of digital and HR guitar
Rayark: Deemo
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Deemo (2013)
Utopiosphere
M2U
Mainly piano but with guitar arrangement
Deemo II (2022)
ANiMA
xi
Guitar-based and metal-toned
lowiro: Arcaea
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Arcaea (2017)
World Vanquisher
void
Digital HR sound
Arcaea (2018)
Fracture Ray
Sakuzyo
Progressive HR style
Arcaea (2020)
PRAGMATISM
Team Grimoire
Strong metal core development
Hard rock elements in VR music games
Beat Saber
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Rock Mixtape DLC (2022)
Sweet Child O” Mine
Guns N” Roses
Experience guitar masterpieces in VR
Rock Mixtape DLC (2022)
The Pretender
Foo Fighters
Representative songs from the 2000s with strong HR elements
Linkin Park Pack (2020)
In the End
Linkin Park
Close to Nu-Metal with HR elements
Linkin Park Pack (2020)
Numb
Linkin Park
Re-evaluated with VR
Other VR music games
Title
Tracks
Artist
Notes
Audioshield (2016)
Any import
User sound source
Experience hard rock for yourself
Ragnarok VR (2020)
Many HR arrangements
In-house artist
HR experience from a drummer’s perspective
Impact and Significance
Overseas, the "”Guitar Hero’’ → Start playing the guitar movement was actually born.
In Japan, GuitarFreaks/DrumMania pioneered the idea of ”“real performance feeling’’ and laid the foundation for music game culture.
Taiko no Tatsujin focuses on pop music, but with their hard rock/metal style original songs, they imprinted a guitar-like sound on young people.
SOUND VOLTEX has a strong electro tone, but actively incorporates hard rock and metal elements to express the “rock-like impact” of a new generation.
Conclusion
Hard rock is more than just a music genre; it has been closely connected to the growth of video game culture, from arcades to music games to e-sports. By sharing the “sound impact” of each era, both games and hard rock continue to evolve across generations.
YouTube Podcast
*This podcast is in English, but you can watch it with automatic subtitles and translation.
![[Column] History of the intersection of hard rock and gaming culture](/../assets/images/column-hard-rock-game.webp)
